ABSTRACT Rust caused by Cerotelium fici leads to significant defoliation in common fig trees (Ficus carica). However, studies on its epidemiology remain scarce. The aim of the present study is to investigate common fig rust progress in leaves inoculated at different ages over two growing seasons (dry and rainy) in an experimental fig orchard. Artificially inoculated leaves and those exposed to natural infection showed more severe rust symptoms when they were inoculated earlier - up to 45 days after leaf emergence. Disease severity and leaf longevity (in days) were inversely and directly proportional to leaf age at inoculation time, respectively. Leaves inoculated at earlier presented significantly higher disease progression rates based on number of pustules per cm², broader area under the disease progress curve (AUDPC) recorded for pustule density and higher maximum severity, which was visually estimated as the percentage of lesioned leaf area. Inoculated young leaves abscised 40 to 60 days earlier than the uninoculated leaves, which were protected from natural infection by plastic bags. The uninoculated leaves remained attached to the plants from 90 to 100 days. These findings highlight apical sprouts as primary targets for protective fungicide applications, which must be more intense at early growing season in order control rust in common fig crops.

ABSTRACT Soil conditioners have humic acid levels which can control nematodes and promote plant nutrition. The objective of this work was to evaluate different concentrations and doses of commercial soil conditioner Premium® on motility, mortality, hatching, infectivity and reproduction of Meloidogyne incognita in tomato. In order to evaluate motility, mortality, and hatching, second stage juveniles (J2) or eggs were subjected to incubation at different concentrations of soil conditioner. To evaluate infectivity and reproduction, infested soil with M. incognita were mixed to different concentrations of commercial soil conditioner. Thirty-day-old tomato seedlings (cv. Kada) were transplanted into the pots and after 30 days the numbers of galls, egg masses and eggs per gram of root were evaluated. The use of soil conditioner drastically reduced motility at a concentration of 66.67 g L-1 and caused mortality above 98% in M. incognita J2 at 133.33 g L-1. Exposure of eggs to soil conditioner reduced J2 hatching by more than 50% at a concentration of 2.5 g L-1. Highest concentrations of soil conditioner provided lower infectivity and reproduction of M. incognita in tomato. Soil conditioner at a dose of 5.0 g provided greater development of the root system, demonstrating the efficiency of this product.

ABSTRACT In pest control, understanding insecticide compatibility and selectivity is crucial to effectively integrate the use of insecticides and parasitoids. The aim of this study was to evaluate the compatibility of mixtures of insecticides and fungicides recommended for melon and their selectivity in Trichogramma pretiosum Riley (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae). The were evaluated the compatibility of six mixtures: 1) Spinetoram + Pyraclostrobin and Fluxapyroxad; 2) Cyromazine + Pyraclostrobin and Fluxapyroxad; 3) Cyproconazole + Spinetoram; 4) Cyantraniliprole + Abamectin + Metiram and Pyraclostrobin; 5) Spinetoram + Azoxystrobin and Difenoconazole; 6) Abamectin + Cyantraniliprole; and a Control (distilled water). The compatible mixtures were applied to Anagasta kuehniella (Zeller, 1879) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) eggs, before and after T. pretiosum parasitism. Was evaluated: mortality of adult T. pretiosum females after exposure to treated eggs, parasitism, emergence and number of parasitoids emerged/egg. Only treatment 4 showed change in physical stability after 5 minutes. In selectivity tests, treatments 1, 3, and 5 caused greater mortality (>47%) of female adults. In pre-parasitism, parasitism (>77%) and emergence (>76%) were observed in all treatments, and all the mixtures were classified as innocuous to the parasitoid in these parameters. In post-parasitism, treatments affected negatively emergence (>51%) and number of parasitoids/egg at the three ages studied. Therefore, all mixtures were considered stable and viable for use with T. pretiosum, as long as they were applied before parasitoid releases.

ABSTRACT The objective of this work was to monitor coffee plants (Coffea arabica L.) after pruning through multispectral images obtained with an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) containing a Mapir Survey 3 camera and estimate agronomic parameters based on simple regression parametric models. Growth evaluation was performed in 228 sampling points related to the coffee plants. The parameters analyzed were plant height, crown diameter, plagiotropic branch length, and the number of plagiotropic branches after the pruning point. The creation of mosaics was performed through the software Agisoft PhotoScan Professional 1.4.5, and radiometric calibration through Mapir Camera Control, georeferenced by QGIS and normalized by ENVI. Based on the models generated, data analysis permitted estimating coffee plants’ agronomic parameters after decote-type pruning (cutting off the orthotropic branch at 1.5 m and 2.0 m above ground) with high accuracy. Height was measured in April’s flight with the near-infrared band (Precision = 91.87%), crown diameter and plagiotropic branches length in April’s flight with the infrared band (Precision = 89.36% and 82.22%, respectively), number of nodes in February’s flight with the near-infrared band (Precision = 79.48%), and the number of plagiotropic branches after the pruning point in June’s flight with the near-infrared band (Precision = 69.57%).

ABSTRACT Maize is an important cereal that is grown and consumed all over the world. Among the selection methods that contribute to increasing the frequency of favorable alleles in native maize populations, selection between and within and stratified mass selection in half-sibling families has proven efficient. This study aimed to conduct an individual selection between and within and stratified mass selection in ten half-sibling families of native maize and to estimate the variance components, genetic parameters, and selection gains for them. Ten half-brother families of families were evaluated. The experimental design was DBC, with two replications totaling 20 experimental units, evaluating four plants per plot. The spacing used was 0.8 by 0.3 m. The following were evaluated: stalk diameter (SD), ear length (EL), ear diameter (ED), number of rows (NF), number of grains per row (NGR), ear mass (EM), and total grain mass (TGM) were evaluated. Individual analyses were carried out for all the traits evaluated, selected to increase the original means with a selection intensity of 50% between/50% within. Stratified mass selection yielded higher selection gains than selection between and within families. The selection of the character’s ear mass and total grain mass showed the highest estimates of genetic gain, 54.45 and 48.37%, respectively.

ABSTRACT Corn intercropped with Urochloa contributes not only to increasing soil coverage but also to improving physical, biological, and chemical quality, especially in Cerrado soils that have low phosphorus availability. Therefore, the objective of this work was to evaluate the response of different doses of phosphorus (P) in production systems on the chemical attributes of the soil, and physiological, biometric, and productive parameters of corn. Thus, an experiment was conducted with a randomized block design in a split-plot scheme, with four replications. The plots consisted of two production systems: single corn and intercropped corn. The subplots consisted of three doses of phosphorus. Soil chemical attributes, gas exchange, chlorophyll content, biometric components, and corn productivity were evaluated. The physiological parameters were not affected by the systems and P doses. In the biometric components, there was a significant effect only for stalk diameter, where corn in the single system had a larger diameter in comparison to the intercropped one. There were effects for P contents in the system and dose factors, while for organic matter and carbon only in the dose factor. Production systems and phosphate fertilizer did not influence corn grain productivity.

ABSTRACT Phoma leaf spot (Phoma spp.) of coffee causes losses of between 15 and 43%, and presents significant variability over time and space, especially in mountain coffee production. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the behavior of this disease at different altitudes and to use time series techniques and regression models to explain disease behavior. The experiment was conducted over two years (from September 2013 to August 2015) with monthly evaluations in a Coffea arabica L. plantation. The incidence and severity progress curves showed irregular behavior most of the time, typical of the disease. Higher altitudes provided higher disease incidence and severity values. Only the incidence and severity progress curves at the altitude of 1143.2 m showed significant autocorrelation over time. Thus, the first-order autocorrelation structure, AR(1), was incorporated in the estimates of the parameters of the linear and nonlinear models. Only the months from February to June/July 2014 were considered, when the disease progressed regularly. The rates obtained for the incidence, overall mean of the 85 points and mean altitude of 1143.2 m, were 5.2 and 4.6%, respectively, while the estimated rates for the severity data under the same conditions were 0.3 and 0.1%, respectively. These values represent the expected increase in incidence and severity each month. The Phoma leaf spot presents complex temporal dynamics, influenced by microclimatic variables associated with altitude.